- In December 2024, egg prices jumped nearly 40%, reaching $4.15 for a dozen large, grade-A eggs.
- Waffle House customers, like Linda Brooks, are noticing higher prices on their meals, with an extra 50 cents added per egg.
- Watch the video to see how neighbors are turning to self-sustaining solutions, raising chickens, and sharing eggs with neighbors to help manage costs.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
You’ve probably noticed they’ve gotten more expensive recently. Businesses and consumers are finding ways to navigate the rising cost of eggs.
“Yeah, I’m here usually a couple of times a week,” says Linda Brooks, a regular at the Crawfordville Waffle House. She noticed the increase in egg prices. “Today they had started the $.50 extra on each egg.”
Waffle House isn’t the only place where eggs have gotten more expensive. In December 2024, retail egg prices were almost 40% higher than last year, with the average price for a dozen large, grade-A eggs reaching $4.15. (U.S. Department of Agriculture)
Experts say the rise in egg prices is largely due to avian influenza outbreaks and changes in the market. As a result, some people have turned to raising their own chickens to cope with the cost.
Casey McSweeney is one of those people. She has several chickens and shares the eggs with her neighbors in Sopchoppy. "It’s about self-sustaining and sustaining our neighbors," she says.
Last year, I reported on the closure of Sopchoppy’s only grocery store, which still remains closed. McSweeney says producing her own food has helped her help her neighbors. “We have learned to adapt, and that’s basically what we’re doing.”
Despite the increase in prices, Brooks is hopeful things will get better soon. “Eventually prices will go down.”
McSweeney says she plans to set up a farm stand in her driveway to provide eggs for the community.
